2025 Volendam, La Goulette, Tunisia...

 I was out early on deck braving the cool windy conditions to get the sail in photos of La Goulette, Tunisia...  We cleared Tunisian Immigration and met our guide Fekker, his assistant Boo-boo and driver outside the terminal.  Ann, Cathy and I asked our friend Gwen if she wanted to accompany us and we headed to Dougga with a police escort until we left the city of Tunis.  It was a two-hour drive to Dougga through the Tunisian countryside passing many farms and thousands of olive trees. Today was a definite off the beaten path adventure and Dougga was well worth the 2-hour journey. The incredible state of preservation of Dougga combined with its mix of cultural influences led UNESCO to list it as a World Heritage site in 1997.  Grand in size and full of fascinating sites, Dougga is one of Africa’s most magnificent and extremely well preserved ancient archaeological ruins inhabited by a series of cultures: notably; the Numidians, the Punics, the ancient Greeks and the Romans.  We toured the ruins including the theatre, an amphitheater, temples, the forum, a wealthy neighborhood boasting public baths featuring intricate mosaics and columns and horseshoe-shaped row of 12 latrines. In the nearby area is a villa known as the House of Trifolium with a beautiful courtyard.  The temple is in remarkable condition and boasts 10-meter-high walls lined with fluted columns.  From a distance you could see one of the oldest ruins at Dougga, a 6-tiered Punic-Libyan mausoleum dating back the 2nd century BC.  Not only was Dougga impressive, we also had the place to ourselves and we had fun exploring and taking pictures.  The rain held off till just when we were leaving Dougga. On our return to La Goulette we made a quick stop at Testour.  Testour, Tunisia, was founded in the early 17th century by Muslim and Jewish refugees fleeing the Spanish Inquisition, and its history is deeply rooted in this Andalusian heritage. The town's unique architecture blends Spanish and North African styles, with a notable Great Mosque featuring a distinctive reverse clock, a main plaza and commercial area. Many structures remain from the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, including mosques, a synagogue, and a Jewish cemetery. The icing on the cake was our walk around the town taking in the historic sites and the Saturday market.  It was a totally unexpected great day in Tunisia.